The consequences of overturning Roe v. Wade in Texas
After 49 years since the landmark decision, the overturning of Roe v. Wade not only has a major impact on abortion rights but will change multiple aspects of health care across the U.S.
The decision over the constitutional validity of abortions loomed over the country for 2 months due to the leaked majority draft opinion of the Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court case in May but the waiting finally ended on Friday with the announcement of the overturn.
With the official release of the majority opinion, many Texans begin to wonder what a life without the right to an abortion looks like for them.
Senate Bill 8 controls Texas’ abortion law
As of June 27, 2022, Senate Bill 8 (S.B. 8) governs the state’s abortion law. The law went into effect Sept. 1, 2021 and allows a voluntary abortion up to six weeks from gestation with gestational age beginning at the end of a person’s latest menstrual cycle. After six weeks, the only exceptions include life-threatening physical conditions.
Another important aspect of S.B. 8 is potential prosecution. The bill empowers a private citizen (anyone who is not an officer of or employed by the state) to bring a civil lawsuit against anyone who performs an abortion or aids and abets a person seeking an abortion after embryotic cardiac activity is detected.
This includes reimbursement for any portion of an abortion procedure by an individual or insurance company. If litigation is pursued, an individual will face a potential second-degree felony murder charge with a minimum civil penalty of $10,000.
Current Texas abortion requirements
Texas requires an abortion seeker to make a minimum of two trips to the same provider before a procedure with a mandated 24 waiting period. A person must first undergo a sonogram where they are required to receive a verbal explanation of the sonogram. At these appointments, they also receive state-mandated paperwork with information about the alternatives, risks and the development of the fetus. Additionally, a person must receive counseling at least 24 hours before a procedure can be performed. A Texas physician is allowed to prescribe abortion inducing medication for pregnancies that are less than 49 weeks of gestational age. While abortion inducing medication is still legal in Texas before this mark, Senate Bill 4 does not allow the mailing of any abortion inducing drug.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade does not mean the national banning of abortion. The legality of abortion is now in the hands of the individual states, but the White House is currently considering the potential use of executive action to maintain abortion rights.
“Trigger Law” House Bill 1280 set to go into effect
House Bill 1280 has already passed in Texas and is set to go into effect 30 days after the Supreme Court judgement. Like S.B. 8, H.B. 1280 verbiage does not focus on prosecution of the person seeking the abortion, but rather the person aiding, abetting or performing the procedure. 12 other states have passed similar trigger laws. The laws in these states will completely criminalize abortion except for during pregnancies that can cause life-threatening physical conditions. These states do not have exceptions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.
H.B. 1280 going into effect means that any person who attempts to provide an abortion will be charged with a second-degree felony murder and any person who successfully performs an abortion will be charged with a first-degree felony murder. Both charges are subject to a civil penalty of a minimum of $100,000 for each violation committed.
Consequences of criminalizing abortion
The criminalization of abortion in Texas will lead to many foreseeable consequences including an increased birth rate which will coincide with an increase of burden on social services, a decrease in access to child care, an increase in women’s poverty and women’s unemployment.
“When we talk about ‘The Great Resignation,’ it’s actually a women’s resignation,” said Beth Matusoff Merfish, Department Chair of Liberal Arts, Associate Professor of Art History, and Inaugural Chair of the City of Houston Women’s Commission. “During the pandemic we saw women and men leaving their jobs but what happened is the men came back and the women did not. We have only started to see small numbers of women coming back to the workforce across the country.”
Women already face troubles finding safe, affordable child care during pandemic times and a post Roe v. Wade world will prove to make that more difficult for them. Without someone to care for their children, parents are forced to stay at home. Additionally, this applies to UHCL students who are parents and those thinking about pursuing an education through the university. Though Helga Schmidt, undergraduate representative for the College of Science and Engineering and former SG President J Scates proposed a resolution in support of a child care center, UHCL does not currently provide any child care services on campus.
“There are currently, looking at ages 0-5, only enough spaces [in child care centers] for 46% of Houston’s children.” Merfish said. “This a major contributor to poverty, especially women’s poverty.”
This is a problem for the general economy and for women’s poverty rates, especially in Houston. Elizabeth Gregory, Director of the Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies department and the Institute for Research on Women, Gender & Sexuality (IRWGS) and Audrey K. Miller, a research associate at the IRWGS, found in their study that Harris County women are nearly 50% more likely than men to be under the poverty line. Additionally, pay equity takes a dive because when women leave the workforce, it creates larger wage gaps.
The effects on UHCL clinics and healthcare
UHCL community members are not exempt from these effects. Merfish said, historically, when a wave of abortion restrictions are passed in Texas, the closure of health care clinics comes with it. Large facilities don’t typically close but small neighborhood clinics do.
The closing of these clinics means that members of the community will not only see a loss of termination ability but general and women’s healthcare here considering that UHCL is a Hispanic serving institution, a minority serving institution, and a university with many first-generation students.
These students’ backgrounds make them demographically more likely to lose health care than others. These backgrounds include people of color, sexual and gender minority statuses, and individuals who live in rural areas.
“Those who already have insufficient access to healthcare will now have less,” Merfish said.
If a UHCL student needs care, the campus offers some health services in SSCB 1.1301 and has resources to clinics for services that it does not provide. The Student Health Plan under Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas currently offers limited abortion coverage. Under this plan, students can receive coverage for a portion of the non-elective termination of an ectopic pregnancy and a spontaneous termination of pregnancy that occurs during a period of gestation in which a viable birth is not possible.
Another health and safety concern is the increase in the number of unsafe abortions, whether self-managed or sought out. The World Health Organization defines an unsafe abortion as a procedure for terminating an unintended pregnancy carried out either by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment that does not conform to minimal medical standards, or both.
The over turning’s impact on mental health
Further examining the healthcare consequences of Roe v. Wade’s overturning, there are the mental health impacts that a person faces when bodily autonomy is taken away.
“There has been considerable research conducted that demonstrates that individuals who are denied abortions are more likely to experience higher levels of anxiety and decreased self-esteem,” said Jason Boothe, associate director of counseling services. “Conversely, there is no research to suggest that having an abortion leads one to develop a mental health disorder.
The closing of these clinics can have devastating effects on members of the LGBTQ+ community because they are facilities that provide reproductive health care regardless of gender identification and sexual orientation. Additionally, these clinics are places that LGBTQ+ people feel safe and accepted at. With these closures, a whole community of people are alienated.
Where some pregnant people might feel alienated, others might be forced to maintain toxic or abusive relationships because of being forced to carry a pregnancy full term.
“There can be increased risk for domestic violence/abuse for women who are forced to stay in contact with violent partners,” Boothe said.
The unknown: Uncertainties that accompany the overturning
It is unclear if Houston and surrounding communities possess the resources that will be necessary to provide the proper prenatal and postnatal care that a pregnant person who is low income requires. This care is essential to ensure that pregnancies are safe.
It is unclear exactly how Roe v. Wade’s overturning will affect access to contraceptives.
“The line between regular contraception and the morning after pill is a very, very, blurry thin line,” Merfish said.
Other unclear subjects Roe v. Wade’s overturning will affect include in vitro fertilization (IVF) and the legal ramifications of a person crossing state lines to seek and obtain an abortion. States with strict abortion laws could potentially have the legal capacity to restrict IVF if their definition of life begins at fertilization. Texans are no longer allowed to have telehealth consults with doctors, in or out of state, and have the prescription mailed to them. Texans are being told that their best and only option for abortion access is to cross state borders: a feat easier said than done for those lacking the resources needed to travel.
Leaving Texas for abortion access
With Texas being such a large state, many residents are living in abortion deserts meaning that the nearest abortion clinic is over 100 miles away. Many Houstonians will not have the luxury of a quick, simple hop over the eastern border to Louisiana because it be banned there too because of Senate Bill 342. Nearby states that Texans will be able to consider are Kansas (before 22 weeks) and New Mexico, where abortion is protected into the third trimester.
Traveling across state borders raises various hurdles for a person seeking an abortion. An individual might need to take time off work, find childcare for their young ones, find someone to travel with to make sure that they can leave a clinic safely, find money to cover expenses for the procedure, travel, and potentially stay at a hotel because of mandated waiting periods.
Even if a person can afford the expenses and figure out the accommodations to seek health care in another state, a transition to such few states providing these services will result in an increase in the number of abortions performed at clinics and possible overwhelm clinics and increase wait times.
The uncertainties of the law continue into the alternatives for Texans seeking an abortion. It is unclear whether prosecution will be able to extend past state lines. In a post Dobbs v. Jackson’s Women’s Health Organization world, it could be possible for a Texas resident to be sued for seeking an abortion out of state.
Reaching out
With the release of the Supreme Court opinion, all the facts, varying laws state to state, and uncertainty around the decision can be overwhelming. UHCL students are encouraged to take advantage of being a community member and seek out the resources available. Whether it be a recreational club to help counter some of the anxiety, counseling services for support or advocation through a club, there are many places to find support.
“You are not alone,” Boothe said. “Try to practice self-care by limiting social media activity or exposure to news if you find yourself becoming overwhelmed. Identify other ways to practice self-care during this time. Remember, UHCL Counseling Services provides a free, confidential space for you whether you need a one-time visit to help think through a situation, or for ongoing support.”
